10/31/09

In case you didn't notice, the new Lilith Fair website is up and the initial cities have been announced (Chicago is the closest). I wish I could be more excited about this, as I was for the first iteration, but it's not looking good. The logo alone is unappealing.

10/29/09

(NEWS & VIDEO) Last night Google announced partnerships that will simplify and improve how people find music. As only the tech giant could do, MySpace, lala, imeem, Rhapsody, Pandora, Gracenote and all four major label groups have come together to provide Google content for a new music search engine.

Users who type on an artist's name, album title or a snippet of a lyric will see results that include a single song play button from either lala or MySpace's iLike. A buy option and links to more content are also included, as are links to artist content on imeem, Rhapsody and Pandora. Gracenote is powering the lyric search function.

10/28/09

Langhorne Slim had been on my radar for some time, mostly because of my friend Robin's emphatic recommendation of him. I wasn't able to make it last time he was in town, but checked out his music and liked it. Since then he's released his new Be Set Free album, of which there are some gems on it.

Earlier that evening I skipped my Yoga class and met up with some friends for Happy Hour (a good choice sometimes). After some a couple delicious Bourbon Barrel-Aged Blackout Stouts, I headed to the Grog Shop around 9:30, but in true Grog form, the first act hadn't even started yet. Mike St. Jude & the Valentines opened. A local band who really played with some passion. Not bad. Dawes was up next. A band out of California, they were a little more polished. Again, good stuff, but nothing too moving.

Langhorne Slim took the stage around 11:30ish. By this time, the crowd had grown and shrunk a little. (I mean, this *was* a Wednesday night.) But I stuck it out based on my friend's strong recommendation. Langhorne took the stage with his band a mountain of energy. It was needed. The band was great, Langhorne was definitely energetic and I can see why people love him so. I wasn't as familiar with his songs as I would have liked, but from what I heard before, then hearing them at the show and since, Langhorne Slim has definitely settled in as a strong favorite and someone I would definitely see again. Next time on a weekend. ;-)

You may also note that I played his song Land of Dreams on Shindignation! It's worthy of a reappearance:

You may have heard Marina & the Diamonds' "I am not a Robot" on my appearance on Shindignation! (just below)... Well, I got an update on the new video, and then a friend reminded me of how cool the previous video was. Thought I'd share both...

Since starting this blog, I've started to get a LOT more promotional emails. It's great, getting all kinds of updates that I wouldn't have received otherwise. Some of the more savvy promoters are including download links to the entire album. It's these promotions that stand out and make me take notice. In this case, the band was Brownout - which is a band that's a little outside my typical genre(s), but they sounded great! The other part of the promotion was their upcoming show at Nighttown. I checked about scoring some free tix and they obliged.

First off, I really have to give props to Nighttown. What a COOL place. I've been there before, but kinda forget how swanky that place is... To be able to sit down for a great meal and listen to someone like Brownout is just awesome. Show started at 7:00 and was done by 8:30. Perfect for the responsible, music-loving adult. True, the meal may be a little pricier than you're hoping for, but I was able to score a $5 burger at the bar (which was delicious).

Brownout definitely filled the stage, with drummer, djembe, multiple guitars, bass, and a horn section. They're from Austin, TX and have a Latino flavor to them, but they definitely bring in a larger world music vision into their show. Even cooler than that, is the rock and funk elements thrown it. It basically boils down to one hell of a groove. You really should check these guys out if you get a chance.

10/23/09

I've been singing the praises of La Blogotheque for some time now, but they've just upped the ante with these couple of videos from Plants & Animals. I saw these guys at Pitchfork last year and have been enjoying their album. These videos take my respect to another level, both for the site and the artist.

I'm embedding the videos here for the lazy people, but if you really want a good experience, follow the link over the the native Vimeo site and watch in HD and Fullscreen. Then just sit back and turn it up.

10/22/09

I haven't spent much time with Martha Wainwright since her first album, but that's nothing on her. I think she's a phenomenal artist, and if I would trust anyone to pull off Edith Piaf, it would be her. (No US release date?)

Martha Wainwright stamps her je ne sais quoi on a beautiful selection of rare and acclaimed Edith Piaf songs, passionately sung and romantically interpreted by Martha on her stunning album 'Sans Fusils, Ni Souliers, A Paris. Martha Wainwright's Piaf Record' out November 9th.

The album was recorded over three intimate performances in New York's Dixon Place Theatre in June. Produced by Hal Willner, Martha Wainwright assembled a unique band of musicians including long-time collaborator Brad Albetta, who produced Martha's first two albums, pianist Thomas Bartlett and electric guitarist/multi-instrumentalist Doug Wieselman to capture the French chanteuse's venerable catalogue, beautifully coupled with Martha's incredible, evocative and characterful voice.

Cautious of avoiding the cliche of looking sad, pretending to be drunk with a glass of absinthe on the table, Martha creates tension and urgency on this charming 12-track record - delivered with paralleled emotion conveying Edith Piaf's mystical vulnerability. Highlights include 'Adieu Mon Coeur', 'Vieux Piano', 'Une Enfant' and a transfixing version of 'Le Foule'.

Growing up in Montreal and speaking French at school, Martha was totally influenced and captivated by Piaf as a child, having listened to her music since the age of eight. "There are certain things about her that I have always been influenced by," says Martha. "The emotive sensibility of her voice. She's an incredibly emotional singer and I've always been an incredibly emotional singer and pained singer."

10/21/09

And since I'm on the topic of rap I'll share another great artist with you. K'naan is a native born Somalian who is also extremely talented. His last two albums have had some stellar tracks on them and are both worthy in their own right. Well, he's also offering up a free copy of The Messengers, which is a compilation of 3 EP's dedicated to 3 remarkable artists.

The way he weaves his sound in with these artists - especially Bob Dylan - is amazing. You should get this. Did I mention it was FREE?

It feels like this post has been a long time coming. I first heard of Kid Cudi last year and was instantly intrigued... here's this rapper from Cleveland who's incredibly creative, honest, and loves where he came from. His sound is different from some more of the traditional rap, as he's chosen some creative tracks to sample (Paul Simon / Band of Horses) and some non-traditional artists to collaborate with (MGMT / Ratatat).

I am sold. He's shown nothing but respect for his burgeoning career, he appreciates where he's been and where he's going, and he's got the chops to keep the momentum going. I'm anxious to see how far he takes this.

So after all this being said, I first found out I missed seeing him in the Grog Shop last November. Talk about true disappointment. I knew he was getting big and knew I wouldn't get that chance again. Then he showed up at the House of Blues with Asher Roth (another respectable rapper). I missed that show for Pitchfork. I thought my chances were all but done, until I heard the announcement that he was coming to Case!! Wow.

He performed at Adelbert Gymnasium, which if you've ever seen a show at a college gymnasium, they always suck. But still... you couldn't beat the proximity of the show, the $10 ticket and the $1 beers.

For his show, I think I knew just about every song. The crowd was a mix of some true fans, some underage drunk kids looking for something to do, and some international students who didn't seem to know what was up. All these elements combined made for a mediocre experience compared to my imagination of what happened during the shows I missed, but that's not to take anything away from Kid Cudi. It was just him, a DJ and BIG bouncer on stage. He's got a pretty small stature, but the really filled the stage with energy, bounding and rapping about.

I wish I could have heard more of what he was saying, but the songs were great and the beat was even better.

10/20/09

I love sharing great music and musicians with people, and I equally like getting emphatic recommendations back. My friend John turned me on to Ben Sollee many months ago and i'm so glad he did. His album has really grown on me and has become a favorite for lazy Sunday afternoons. He's got this clean and modern folk sensibility about him. He's also got some spunk...

Seeing shows at the Spot aren't always great. They have to be high energy to drown out all the students there just hanging out and talking. Two people walking on stage and playing folk music doesn't always make a great show there. At one point, some drunk student was yelling out and interrupting Ben. After being interrupted 3 times, he just started the song, then paused and finished what he was saying and flipped that guy off. Ha! Good stuff.

Ben started to loosen up after playing "It's Not Impossible" and really began to jam. He also played a great cover of Tom Waits' "Chocolate Jesus." Hopefully next time, he'll play at the Beachland Tavern for a little more respectful and appreciative audience. If (when) he comes back, I'll be there.

Starting today you can listen to the stream of SAINTHOOD in its entirety on Myspace! For real! No guilt! It’s the worldwide debut of the record and we hope you all love it. Hopefully you’ll all be ready to sing along when we come to a city near you! We did an interview with the Myspace Music Feed too, they posted that today so you can check it out now atmyspace.com/myspacemusicfeed.

10/15/09

One of the more exciting bands to come out of NEOhio lately... Drummer is a mash-up of some pre-existing local flavor, and their debut release is on the local Audio Eagle Records. They have an upcoming show at the Beachland on Saturday, Oct. 24th that you shouldn't miss.

10/14/09

Another great Spot show this Fall. Unfortunately it was a long night and I wasn't able to stay long. The Antlers sounded great... Luckily, someone was there to record the show, so you can just see for yourself. I would definitely see them again.

10/13/09

As a fan of local radio (particularly WRUW), I'm really pleased to see that Apple is still working on a radio for the iPhone. The internet and MP3's are great and all, but there's just something special about local radio.

9to5Mac is reporting they’ve received a tip that Apple is developing an FM Radio app for the iPhone and iPod touch that will have background multi-tasking (like Apple’s Phone and iPod apps), and may be able to pause live programming like the new iPod nano radio feature.

It will either be provided as a stand alone app, or integrated into the iPod app, but it’s still a work in progress:

The holdup on this app is that Apple is trying to integrate the Mobile iTunes Store purchases into the functionality of the program. For instance, if you like a song you are listening to on the radio (and that station supports tagging and you are in the US), you will be able to push a button and see the song (and all of the information around it) in the iTunes Mobile store. With another click, you’ll be able to make a purchase. This is an extension of the Song Tagging feature used in the iPod Nanos. Perhaps they could even add some Shazam technology to help with those stations that don’t support tagging.

The Guster show at HOB on Thursday, Nov. 9th is SOLD OUT. This is a bummer... a show I was really looking forward to. I guess I should have seen it coming.

Dan Auerbach's show at the HOB on Wednesday, Dec. 9th has been CANCELLED. I'm kinda sad on this, but more-so for the openers than for the openers, Justin Townes Earle & Jessica Lea Mayfield. I just love 3 name acts.

The Avett Brothers announced a show at the HOB on Saturday, Feb. 27th. Tickets are $26.50 in Advance. Hmm... I guess this is good. Not getting a lot of good feedback on the new major label release for these guys, and then the HOB. I think I would have preferred it if they stayed where they were and came back to the Beachland. Still, if you've never seen them, it's a great show.

Tegan & Sara just scheduled a show at the Lakewood Civic Auditorium on Sunday, March 28th. This is the tour that is supporting their new album, Hell. My first experience with them at the Grog Shop was amazing. I skipped seeing them at the HOB because I knew it would be a madhouse. But I have NO IDEA what seeing them at the Lakewood High School would be like. Almost worth going just for that.

10/6/09

Even though I'm an Apple-fan, I still refuse to buy from iTunes (unless I have no choice). The price point is still too high for digital products. For $10, I'd expect a physical copy of the CD as well as the digital download. So seeing articles like this make me happy to see price competition happening. I think 7digital is a worthy competitor.

7digital Launches In US With 77 Cent Downloads

UK based download store 7digital launched in the United States yesterday with albums priced aggressively at $7.77 and single track downloads at $.77. All are DRM free mp3s and encoded at 320 kps. That puts 7digital pricing at more 20% below iTunes and 10% below Amazon for a higher quality download.

But can a newcomer compete with the might Apple and Amazon's massive online reach? 7digital hopes to grab some market share via sales partnership with Last.fm, Songbird, Winamp and Spotify when it launches in the U.S. "By piggybacking on their reach, we can grab some meaningful market share," said 7 Digital CEO Ben Drury. There's also an app for Blackberry smarpthones.

Another 7digital advantage is a more open platform, in contrast to iTunes and Amazon, that makes using the site for outside downloads and promotions easier. Developers can even integrate a 7digital click to buy option that never takes the buyer off the original site.

The Price Race Downward

Lower prices won't hurt 7digital chances either. "The price per unit is definitely plummeting," added Drury. "People will definitely spend less money on a track-by-track basis.... But the volume of consumption will go up."

But 7digital's real hurdle is...getting consumers to hand over their credit card info and then keeping them in the habit of buying there. iTunes thrives because it created a tight and easy to use ecosystem centered around the iPod and now iPhone. Amazon grabbed some marketshare in part because millions of consumers felt comfortable buying there and already had their info on file.

But price is also part of Amazon's sales strategy and now 7digital has trumped them by more than 10%. Amazon is usually a price leader in other sectors and how they react could put additional pressure on labels to lower wholesale download prices. Publishers may finally be forced to reconsider their pricing as well.

Change is painfully slow in the music industry. But just as when Amazon entered the download marketplace, the addition 7digital - who have been innovators in Europe for more than 5 years - to the US market is a harbinger of lower prices and more aggressive competition in digital music.

Case's UPB Concert Series at the Spot continues to surprise with yet another phenomenal act. Tomorrow night, cellist virtuoso and folk-hero Ben Sollee will be performing on campus. I really wish these shows were more accessible by the public... If you wanna go, maybe I can get you in.